Synthesis of pyrochlore nanostructures and uses thereof

ABSTRACT

A template-free reverse micelle (RM) based method is used to synthesize pyrochlore nanostructures having photocatalytic activity. In one embodiment, the method includes separately mixing together a first acid stabilized aqueous solution including pyrochlore precursor A and a second acid stabilized aqueous solution including pyrochlore precursor B with an organic solution including a surfactant to form an oil-in-water emulsion. Next, equimolar solutions of the first and second acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsions are mixed together. Then, the mixture of the first and second acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion is treated with a base to produce a precipitate including pyrochlore precursors A and B. After which, the precipitate is dried to remove volatiles. The precipitate is then calcined in the presence of oxygen to form a pyrochlore nanostructure, such as a bismuth titanate (Bi 2 Ti 2 O 7 ) pyrochlore nanorod. The method of synthesizing the pyrochlore nanorod is template-free.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/333,463, filed May 11, 2010, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to pyrochlore nanostructures and, more specifically, to synthesis of pyrochlore nanorods, such as bismuth titanate pyrochlore nanorods, and uses thereof.

BACKGROUND

Photocatalytic hydrogen production is a possible answer to the present energy crisis. However, efficient hydrogen production requires the development of materials that demonstrate tunable optical response, have UV-visible activity, and are amenable to synthesis using simple methods. Metal oxides, mainly titanium dioxide (TiO₂), have been studied for photocatalytic applications. Fujishima et al., Nature 1972, 238, 37; Hoffmann et al., Chem. Rev. 1995, 95, 69. However, decades of work with TiO₂, such as to improve its properties via doping and addition of other photoactive materials, has demonstrated only incremental improvements. Martyanov et al., Chem. Commun., 2004, 2476; Anpo et al., J. Catal., 2003, 216, 505.

Pyrochlores (A₂B₂O₇) are a lesser studied family of compounds that offer the flexibility to tune photocatalytic properties. Bismuth titanate (BTO), Bi₂Ti₂O₇, is a photoactive member of the pyrochlore family that can potentially meet the aforementioned objectives desired of a photocatalyst. However, the full potential of this photocatalyst for hydrogen generation has not yet been fully exploited, which is partially because attempts to synthesize and characterize stoichiometric BTO pyrochlore are far and few. The earlier adopted synthesis methods have not always resulted in a pure pyrochlore phase. Yao et al., Appl. Catal. B Environ. 2004, 52, 109; Yao et al., Appl. Catal. A. Gen. 2003, 243, 185; Yao et al., J. Mol. Catal. A. 2003, 198, 343. For example, Radosavljevic et al. reported a method that resulted in a Bi—Ti—O composition of the form Bi_(1.74)Ti₂O_(6.62). Radosavljevic et al., J. Solid State Chem. 1998, 136, 63. Hector and Wiggin reported the synthesis and structural study of stoichiometric BTO along with some impurities of Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂ using a co-precipitation method. Hector et al., J. Solid State Chem. 2004, 177, 139.

Recently, attempts to prepare stable crystalline BTO with a nanotube structure using anodized alumina as a template have been reported. Zhou et al., J. Mater. Res. 2006, 21, 2941. A template method, however, requires template removal, which is an additional step. To synthesize these materials economically on a large scale requires the development of a template-free method.

Accordingly, a need exists for new template-free methods of synthesizing pyrochlore nanostructures, such as pyrochlore nanorods.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one embodiment of the invention, a method of synthesizing a pyrochlore nanostructure having the general formula A₂B₂O₇, where A and B are rare-earth or transition metal species and O is oxygen, is provided. The method includes separately mixing together a first acid stabilized aqueous solution including a pyrochlore precursor A and a second acid stabilized aqueous solution including a pyrochlore precursor B with an organic solvent mixture including a surfactant and an organic solvent to form a first acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion of precursor A and a second acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion of precursor B. Next, equimolar portions of the first and second acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsions are mixed together to form a mixed acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion including the pyrochlore precursor A and the pyrochlore precursor B. Then, the mixed acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion is treated with a base to increase the pH from acidic to alkaline to produce a precipitate including the pyrochlore precursors A and B. The precipitate is isolated then calcined in the presence of oxygen to form the pyrochlore nanostructure, wherein the method of synthesizing the pyrochlore nanostructure is template-free.

According to another embodiment of the invention, a pyrochlore nanostructure having the general formula A₂B₂O₇ is provided wherein A is bismuth (Bi), calcium (Ca), strontium (Sr), yttrium (Y), barium (Ba), lanthanum (La), or combinations thereof; B is titanium (Ti), vanadium (V), chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), zirconium (Zr), tin (Sn), hafnium (Hf), tantalum (Ta), tungsten (W), or combinations thereof; and O is oxygen; and wherein the nanostructure has a spherical or rod shape.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with a general description of the invention given above, and the detailed description of the embodiments given below, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

FIG. 1A is a schematic representation of a reverse micelle (RM) based template-free method for synthesizing pyrochlore nanostructures in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 1B is a schematic representation of a reverse micelle (RM) based template-free method for synthesizing bismuth titanate pyrochlore nanorods in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2A is a scanning electron microscope (SEM) image of bismuth titanate (BTO) calcined at 650° C.;

FIG. 2B is an x-ray powder diffraction (XRD) pattern of the BTO;

FIG. 2C is a high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) image of the BTO nanorods and the inset is a selected area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern of the BTO nanorods;

FIG. 2D. is an fast Fourier transformation high resolution transmission electron microscopy (FFT-HRTEM) image of the BTO;

FIG. 3 is a schematic representation with SEM images of the BTO showing the morphology change at various calcination temperatures;

FIG. 4 is a comparison of the diffuse reflectance (DR) measurements of commercial (a) TiO₂ (P-25) with (b) BTO nanorods. The inset shows pictures of the (a) TiO₂ (P-25) with (b) BTO;

FIG. 5 is a schematic representation of band edges of BTO pyrochlore nanorods and TiO₂ from diffuse reflectant (DR) UV-vis and density functional theory (DFT) calculations;

FIG. 6 is a photochemical reactor set-up used to study the hydrogen evolution reaction;

FIG. 7 is a graph of time based hydrogen evolution data following UV-vis illumination of a methanol water solution (1:5 ratio) containing the photocatalysts; and

FIG. 8 is a graph of the photodegradation of methyl orange (MO) in the presence of visible light (λ≧405 nm) illumination and photocatalyst films prepared on indium tin oxide (ITO) covered glass slides using (a) Degussa P-25 TiO₂ and (b) BTO nanorods.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

In accordance with embodiments of the invention, a template-free reverse micelle (RM) based method is used to synthesize pyrochlore nanostructures having photocatalytic activity. For purposes herein, a pyrochlore is a chemical compound characterized by the general formula A₂B₂O₇, where A and B can be rare-earth or transition metal species, as further discussed in more detail below, and O is oxygen.

With reference to FIG. 1A, a general method of synthesizing pyrochlore nanostructures having the general formula A₂B₂O₇ includes separately mixing together a first acid stabilized aqueous solution including pyrochlore precursor A and a second acid stabilized aqueous solution including pyrochlore precursor B with an organic solvent mixture including a surfactant and an organic solvent to form an acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion. Equimolar portions of the first and second acid stabilized aqueous solutions then are mixed together to form a mixed acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion of the pyrochlore precursor A and the pyrochlore precursor B. The mixed acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion is next mixed with a base to raise the pH from acidic to alkaline. According to one embodiment, the base may be a basic oil-in-water emulsion, which is prepared by mixing together a basic aqueous solution with an organic solvent mixture including a surfactant and an organic solvent. Mixing the basic oil-in-water emulsion with the mixed acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion produces a precipitate including the pyrochlore precursors A and B. In other words, the mixed acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion is treated with the basic oil-in-water emulsion to raise the pH from acidic to alkaline (e.g., pH>7), which promotes and/or induces the formation of the precipitate including hydroxide salts containing A and B in the desired equimolar ratio. The precipitate is isolated and dried. Upon heating the precipitate to elevated temperatures in the presence of oxygen, a pyrochlore nanostructure, such as a pyrochlore nanorod, is formed without the use of a template.

According to embodiments of the present invention, suitable examples of A of pyrochlore precursor A can include the following elements: bismuth (Bi), calcium (Ca), strontium (Sr), yttrium (Y), barium (Ba), lanthanum (La), and the like, and combinations thereof. Suitable examples of B of pyrochlore precursor B can include the following elements: titanium (Ti), vanadium (V), chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), zirconium (Zr), tin (Sn), hafnium (Hf), tantalum (Ta), tungsten (W), and the like, and combinations thereof.

According to embodiments of the present invention, suitable acids include hydrochloric acid (HCl), nitric acid (HNO₃), acetic acid (CH₃CO₂H), sulfurous acid (H₂SO₃), formic acid (HCO₂H), perchloric acid (HClO₄), and the like. Generally, the selected acid should facilitate dissolution of the pyrochlore precursors A and B.

According to embodiments of the present invention, the organic solvent mixture includes a surfactant, which generally can be an anionic, nonionic, or cationic surfactant. Anionic surfactants can be based on sulfate, sulfonate, phosphinate, or carboxylate anions. Exemplary anionic surfactants include, but are not limited to, perfluorooctanoate (PFOA or PFO), perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS), sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), ammonium lauryl sulfate, and other alkyl sulfate salts, sodium laureth sulfate (also known as sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES)), sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS), alkyl benzene sulfonate, soaps, or fatty acid salts, sodium di(n-octyl) phosphinate, and the like. Nonionic surfactants can include poly(oxyethylene)(4) lauryl ether (Brij® 30), sorbitan monolaurate (Span® 80), and the like. And cationic surfactants can include tetradecyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride (TDMBAC), cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTMAB), tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide (Triton® N-42), and the like. The organic solvent may be, for example, an alkane such as iso-octane, heptane, n-decane, cyclohexane, toluene, decaline, dodecane, and the like; an alkanol such as n-butanol to n-dodecanol, and the like; or an alkanone such as cyclopentanone, cyclohexanone, cycloheptanone, and the like.

According to embodiments of the present invention, the base includes ammonium hydroxide (NH₄OH), potassium hydroxide (KOH), sodium hydroxide (NaOH), ammonia (NH₃) gas, and the like. The base may be dissolved in water to provide the basic aqueous solution.

With respect to the ratio between the water of the first and second acid stabilized aqueous solutions and the surfactant solution, the ratio may range from 4 to 40 v/v. In another example, the ratio may range from 10 to 20 v/v. In yet another example, the water to surfactant solution ratio is about 15 v/v. Depending upon the ratio, different sizes and shapes of the resulting hydroxide precipitate may be obtained. As such, a method of controlling the size and shape of the hydroxide precipitate of pyrochlore precursors A and B includes controlling the water to surfactant solution ratio of the acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion pyrochlore precursors and/or the mixed acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion pyrochlore precursors.

Similarly, controlling the ratio of the water to surfactant solution for the base (e.g., NH₄OH) also facilitates control of the size and shape of the hydroxide precipitate of pyrochlore precursors A and B. For example, the ratio may range from 4 to 40 v/v. In another example, the ratio may range from 10 to 20 v/v. In yet another example, the water to surfactant ratio of the base is about 15 v/v.

The independent mixing together of the acid stabilized aqueous solutions of pyrochlore precursors A and B with the organic solvent mixture to form separate oil-in-water emulsions may be accomplished by any suitable means known to those skilled in the art. According to one embodiment, mixing can include ultrasonicating the oil-in-water emulsions. Without being bound by any particular theory, it is believed that ultrasonication of each of the solutions initiates the formation of colloid solutions of a reverse micelle. Ultrasound mixing may also be used when the two acid stabilized solutions are combined together, and upon subsequent treatment thereof with the base.

The precipitate may be collected by the customary methods such as filtration or centrifugation. The precipitate may be washed with DI water and dried to substantially remove volatiles. For example, the precipitate may be heated overnight in air at 100° C. After drying, the precipitate is subjected to further heating at various temperatures to affect carbonization of residual organics and calcinations so as to form the desired pyrochlore nanostructures, such as pyrochlore nanorods.

The following descriptions serve to provide exemplary embodiments of the invention.

With specific reference now to FIG. 1B, an acid stabilized equimolar aqueous solution of a bismuth precursor, i.e., precursor A of A₂B₂O₇, and an acid stabilized equimolar aqueous solution of a titanium precursor, i.e., precursor B of A₂B₂O₇, are separately prepared. In particular, each of a 0.1M bismuth chloride in 1M HCl solution (acid stabilized aqueous solution of pyrochlore precursor A) and a 0.1M titanium isopropoxide in 1M HCl solution (acid stabilized aqueous solution of pyrochlore precursor B) is prepared. Other bismuth salts may be utilized in place of the BiCl₃ salt including bismuth nitrate, bismuth fluoride, bismuth iodide, bismuth oxychloride, and the like. In addition, other titanium precursors may utilized including titanium(IV) (triethanolaminato) isopropoxide, titanium(IV) bis(ethyl acetoacetato)diisopropoxide, titanium(IV) oxyacetylacetonate, titanium(IV) oxychloride-hydrochloric acid solution, titanium(IV) oxysulfate-sulfuric acid solution, titanium(IV) tert-butoxide, and the like. And HCl may be replaced by other acids including, for example, nitric acid (HNO₃), acetic acid (CH₃CO₂H), sulfurous acid (H₂SO₃), formic acid (HCO₂H), perchloric acid (HClO₄), and the like.

Next, each of the acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsions of bismuth and titanium can be prepared by using a surfactant such as sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulphosuccinate (AOT) in iso-octane. According to one example, a 0.1M AOT in iso-octane solution is prepared. The bismuth solution and the titanium solution are added drop wise to its own AOT-iso-octane solution.

According to this example, 75 ml of 0.1M Ti salt solution is added to 5 ml of 0.1M AOT and 75 ml of 0.1 M Bi salt solution added to 5 ml of 0.1M AOT, which provides a water to surfactant solution ratio of 15 v/v. One (1) hour of ultrasonication of each of the combined solutions initiates the formation of white colloid solutions of the reverse micelle. Ultrasound was used for vigorous mixing and to ensure the transport of the materials across the reverse micelles. Equal amounts of each of the bismuth and titanium white colloid solutions then are added together drop wise and ultrasonicated for one (1) hour.

A 1M ammonium hydroxide in 0.1M AOT-iso-octane solution (oil-in-water emulsion of base) is also separately prepared and sonicated for 1 hr to initiate formation of a white colloid solution of the reverse micelle. In particular, 75 ml of 1M NH₄OH (basic aqueous solution) is added to 5 ml of 0.1M AOT (surfactant solution in organic solvent), which also provides a water to surfactant solution ratio of 15 v/v. Aside from NH₄OH, KOH, NaOH, NH₃ gas, and the like may be used to provide a basic solution. This solution is added drop wise to the combined acid stabilized bismuth and titanium oil-in-water emulsions to increase the pH from acidic to alkaline (pH=9.5), thereby causing a white precipitate to form. The precipitate includes the bismuth salt and titanium salt from the reverse micelle configuration. The precipitate is collected, washed with DI water, and dried by heating overnight in air at 100° C. to form a white powder of the hydroxide of Bi—Ti in the fixed combination of ratio from the synthesis.

With further reference now to FIGS. 2A-2D, and FIG. 3, overnight drying was followed by carbonization in nitrogen at 350° C. and further followed by calcination of the powder in oxygen at various temperatures. Calcination in the presence of oxygen at 500° C. leads to the formation of spherical nanoparticles with a diameter of about 20 nm. When the nanoparticles are further calcined at 650° C., they rearrange to form a rod-shaped morphology having good uniformity, with narrow size distribution, and an aspect ratio of about 1:10 (FIG. 2A).

FIG. 2B shows the X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern of the nanorods formed by calcination at 650° C. The nanorods are identified as crystalline cubic Bi₂Ti₂O₇ with a space group of Fd3m and the lattice parameters a=b=c=20.68 Å (JCPDS #32-0118). X-ray diffraction (XRD) was performed using a Philips APD 1740 system equipped with a graphite crystal monochromator and CuKα radiation (λ=1.54 Å) between the ranges of 20° to 80°=2θ. XRD was carried out using specially obtained polished quartz cut 6° from (0001) crystal plane with a cavity of dimension 3 mm diameter and 1 mm depth (Gem Dugout X-ray Diffraction Products).

FIG. 2C shows a high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) image of the BTO nanorods. The rods have a diameter of about 40-50 nm and a length from about 400-500 nm. Selected area electron diffraction pattern (SAED) shows that the nanorods have a (4 4 4) orientation. The Energy-Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) spectrum of BTO nanorods shows the presence of Bi, Ti and O. Bi and Ti have identical atomic concentration.

FIG. 2D shows a high resolution Fast Fourier Transformation (FFT)-HRETM image of the BTO pyrochlore nanorods with the (4 4 4) orientation as well. From the HRTEM, EDS, and SAED analysis, it can be concluded that the nanorods are pure crystalline pyrochlore BTO. Further, the BTO nanoparticles are about 10 times smaller in size compared to the smallest particles reported previously.

The formation of BTO nanorods can be hypothesized as a solid-phase reaction with a three-step mechanism as follows.

(1) Transport of reactants to the reaction zone: Hydroxides of bismuth and titanium precipitated in the microemulsion constitute the reaction zone. The formation of respective oxides is facilitated by calcination in oxygen at 500° C. The presence of Bi₂O₃ and TiO₂ is evident from XRD. Bi₂O₃ present in the reaction zone can become more reactive by the phase transformation from monoclinic to cubic with increase in temperature. This reactive Bi₂O₃ leads to the formation of solid solution with TiO₂ at 650° C., as is evident from the phase diagram of Bi₂O₃ and TiO₂.

(2) Nucleation of new phase: The solid solution formed in the reaction zone leads to the creation of a new phase in the pyrochlore crystal structure, which is also evident from the XRD data (FIG. 2B).

(3) Growth of the new phase: Variation in growth with temperature can be attributed to the differences in the free energy of formation of the BTO. A preference for growth along the (1 1 1) direction is noted from XRD. In this orientation, the pyrochlore has a thermodynamically most favorable low free energy of formation. The growth of the crystalline nanorods in the pyrochlore phase is confirmed from the XRD (FIG. 2B) and FFT-HRTEM lattice pattern (FIG. 2D). A “d-spacing” value at 2.98 Å corresponding to the high intensity (4 4 4) is noted from the XRD analysis. This represents growth along the (1 1 1) direction after calcination at 650° C.

The nanorods formed at 650° C. in the pyrochlore phase are thermally stable up to 750° C. Increasing the temperature beyond 750° C. causes the nanorods to fuse together to form an aggregate as seen from FIG. 3. A conventional solid state reaction was also performed by taking a physical mixture of Bi₂O₃ and TiO₂ powders in stoichiometric ratio and then calcining in oxygen at 650° C. for 6 h. The resulting material did not yield a pyrochlore phase. This indicates the existence of a synergism between the nanoparticle nucleation in the RM environment, growth, and the calcination temperature. These parameters appear to play a role in the evolution of the particle size, shape, and pyrochlore phase formation.

With reference to FIG. 4, optical measurements were conducted to examine the visible light response of BTO nanorods formed at 650° C. The DRUV-vis spectra of BTO nanorods display a marked red shift in the onset absorbance by 48 nm than TiO₂ (commercial Degussa P-25). The absorbance in the visible light is not at a significant loss in UV absorbance which is typically true for transition metal doped TiO₂. The inset of FIG. 4 shows the color of BTO as pale yellow.

With reference to FIG. 5, Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations were carried out to determine the Partial Density of States (PDOS) of BTO. Plane wave based Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations were use to analyze the electronic property of the BTO. CASTEP program present in the Materials Studio® package supplied by Accelrys® was used for modeling. Plane wave functionalized ultrasoft pseudopotentials were used with a kinetic energy cutoff of 300 eV. The Generalized Gradient Approximation (GGA) with Perdew-Wang exchange and correlation functional (PW91) has been adopted. BTO with a pyrochlore crystal structure has been obtained from ICSD (ICSD#413013). All the BTO properties have been calculated by utilizing a primitive unit cell of the BTO pyrochlore crystal structure. To compare the properties of BTO, anatase TiO₂ (ISCD#. 82080) has been considered as a standard. A reduction in the band gap of about 0.4 eV compared to anatase TiO₂ crystal was evident from PDOS plots determined from the DFT calculation of BTO pyrochlore and TiO₂ anatase. This band gap reduction and shift of valence band is due to the contribution of 6s electrons from Bi³⁺. The schematic representation of band positions of BTO has also been plotted against the water redox potential by using band gap calculated from DRUV-vis data. Thus, the DFT calculations complement the experimental bandgap estimates.

With respect to Table 1 below, the applicability of the BTO nanorods as a potential photocatalyst for splitting water to produce hydrogen was examined. In particular, photo catalytic hydrogen generation experiments were performed in a slurry type photochemical reactor (See FIG. 6) supplied by Ace Glass, Vineland, N.J. The part number of the complete reactor setup is 7840-340. The major parts of the setup, as shown in the FIG. 6, include a reactor 10, a concentric quartz tube 14 (Ace Glass part #7854) that is adapted to house a lamp 18 and fits inside the reactor 10. The concentric quartz tube 14 includes a cooling water inlet 22 and a cooling water outlet 26 and is designed to circulate water for maintaining the temperature of the reaction mixture, where the water flows between the lamp and the contents of the reactor. The lamp 18 is connected to a power source 30 by an electrical connector 34. The reactor 10 further includes a reactant addition port 38, which permits the introduction of reactants into the reactor 10, and a gas outlet port 42, which permits sampling reaction gases. The reactor 10 may further include additional features such as a temperature measuring port 46 and thermometer 50.

In this experiment, 150 mg of the photocatalyst (BTO as well as TiO₂) was weighed and introduced into the reactor. 300 ml of methanol-water mixture was prepared in the ratio of 1:5. The reaction mixture was bubbled with nitrogen for 30 min to remove dissolved oxygen before illuminating the system. The lamp was introduced into the annulus of the reactor at the location shown in FIG. 6. Cold tap water was circulated around the lamp to maintain the temperature of the reaction. The gases evolved were collected through the outlet of the reactor. A gas sampling tube with a rubber cork was used to collect gas from the outlet. A gas chromatograph (GC) was used to identify the gases evolved. The GC was calibrated using high purity (>99.995) hydrogen. The collected gas was analyzed using a HP 6890 GC system with a TCD detector. A precision Hamilton® needle was used to remove representative sample of the gas from the sampling tube and injected into the GC. A molecular sieve capillary column HP-PLOT 5 A, 30 m, 0.32 mm, 25 μm was used to determine the concentration of hydrogen.

With reference to FIG. 7, as well as Table 1, the results show that bare BTO nanorods demonstrate almost twice the hydrogen evolution of TiO₂. All the experiments were performed using identical mass of BTO and TiO₂. The activity of the bare BTO can be further enhanced by suitable substitution of different elements, either at the A site or B site of the flexible A₂B₂O₇ structure. Alternately, the addition of a co-catalyst such as Pt or NiO can further enhance the hydrogen generation activity.

TABLE 1 Comparison of the photocatalytic activity of stoichiometric BTO and commercial TiO₂ (Degussa P-25). Bandgap has been estimated using DRUV-vis and DFT studies. MO degradation H₂ evolution Bandgap Catalyst (vis light λ ≧405 nm (UV-vis light) E_(g) (eV) TiO₂ <1% 140 ml 3.24 BTO 14% 285 ml 2.88

The photocatalytic ability of the BTO under visible light (λ≧405 nm) was also examined by monitoring the degradation of a textile dye, Methyl Orange. TiO₂ showed negligible photodegradation whereas BTO nanorods show 14% degradation during the same period (See Table 1). The photodegradation experiments were performed by coating the photocatalysts (BTO power or Degussa P 25 TiO₂) on an indium tin oxide (ITO) covered glass slide. Before coating, the ITO glass slides were washed thoroughly with DI water followed by ultrasonication in iso-propyl alcohol for 15 min. Conducting side of the cleaned ITO glass slides were coated with a solution prepared by mixing ethylene glycol (10 mL), ethanol (5 mL), polyvinylpyrrolidone (5 mg), and 10 mg of photocatalyst. The photocatalyst coated ITO glass slides were dried and annealing in oxygen for 3 h at 500° C. to remove any organic molecules. This makes a uniform film coating of the photocatalyst on ITO. A similar procedure was adopted to coat DegussaP-25. The photoactivity of the Degussa P-25 film was compared with the photo degradation activity of BTO films using 20 μM methyl orange in DI water as a test compound. The setup used for performing the photodegradation experiments is described in detail in Subramanian et al, Ind. Eng. Chem. Res., 2006, 45, 2187; Sohn et al., Appl. Catal B: Environ. 2008, 84, 372; and/or Kar et al., Environ. Sci. Technol. 2009, 43, 32, which are expressly incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.

A 405 nm cutoff filter purchased from Newport Corporation was used to examine the effects of visible light illumination. Photocatalytic degradation of MO as a function of time is shown in FIG. 8. This confirms that the BTO nanorods demonstrate photoactivity in visible light.

A simple and robust template-free RM method to synthesize highly crystalline stoichiometric pyrochlore nanostructures, e.g., bismuth titanate nanorods, is disclosed herein. The BTO nanorods demonstrate improved photocatalytic hydrogen generation as compared to, for example, commercial Degussa P-25. The BTO also shows visible light activity. The method may be used for preparing pyrochlores nanostructures for wide a range of applications including catalysis, electronics, and sensors.

While the present invention has been illustrated by a description of various embodiments and while these embodiments have been described in considerable detail, it is not the intention of the applicant to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail. The methods described herein present a new way to synthesize not just BTO but a family of compounds belonging to pyrochlores. For example, while discussion of the reverse micelle (RM) based template-free synthesis method has centered on synthesizing stoichiometric BTO pyrochlore nanorods, it should be understood that the bismuth and/or titanium may be replaced with other suitable materials, as desired. In other words, the A and/or B in A₂B₂O₇ can be something other than bismuth or titanium, as discussed herein. In addition, while BTO in stoichiometric pyrochlore (Bi₂Ti₂O₇) crystal structure shows promising photocatalytic activity, pyrochlores allow internal flexibility for different charge balanced combinations as well including, for example, A₂ ³⁺B₂ ⁴⁺O₇, A₂ ²⁺B₂ ⁵⁺O₇, and A₂ ¹⁺B₂ ⁶⁺O₇. Additional advantages and modifications will readily appear to those skilled in the art. Thus, the invention in its broader aspects is therefore not limited to the specific details, representative apparatus and method, and illustrative example shown and described. Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope of applicant's general inventive concept. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of synthesizing a pyrochlore nanostructure having the general formula A₂B₂O₇, where A and B are rare-earth or transition metal species and O is oxygen, the method comprising: separately mixing together a first acid stabilized aqueous solution including a pyrochlore precursor A and a second acid stabilized aqueous solution including a pyrochlore precursor B with an organic solvent mixture comprising a surfactant and an organic solvent to form a first acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion of precursor A and a second acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion of precursor B; mixing together equimolar portions of the first and second acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsions to form a mixed acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion comprising the pyrochlore precursor A and the pyrochlore precursor B; treating the mixed acid stabilized oil-in-water emulsion with a base to increase the pH from acidic to alkaline to produce a precipitate including the pyrochlore precursors A and B; isolating the precipitate; and calcining the precipitate in the presence of oxygen to form the pyrochlore nanostructure, wherein the method of synthesizing the pyrochlore nanostructure is template-free.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein B of the pyrochlore precursor B is titanium (Ti), vanadium (V), chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), zirconium (Zr), tin (Sn), hafnium (Hf), tantalum (Ta), tungsten (W), or combinations thereof.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein A of the pyrochlore precursor A is bismuth (Bi), calcium (Ca), strontium (Sr), yttrium (Y), barium (Ba), lanthanum (La), or combinations thereof.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second acid stabilized solutions each include an acid independently selected from hydrochloric acid (HCl), nitric acid (HNO₃), acetic acid (CH₃CO₂H), sulfurous acid (H₂SO₃), formic acid (HCO₂H), perchloric acid (HClO₄), or combinations thereof.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the surfactant is selected from an anionic surfactant comprising a sulfate, a sulfonate, a phosphinate, or a carboxylate moiety; a cationic surfactant comprising an ammonium moiety; or a nonionic surfactant.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the organic solvent is selected from an alkane, an alkanol, an alkanone, or combinations thereof.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein calcining is performed at a temperature greater than 350° C. and less than 900° C.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein calcining is performed at a temperature greater than 500° C.
 9. The method of claim 1 wherein the pyrochlore nanostructure is a pyrochlore nanorod.
 10. The method of claim 9 wherein the pyrochlore nanorod is a bismuth titanate (Bi₂Ti₂O₇) pyrochlore nanorod.
 11. The method of claim 1 wherein the pyrochlore nanostructure has photocatalytic activity.
 12. The method of claim 1 wherein a ratio of water to organic solvent mixture of the first and second acid stabilized aqueous solutions is from 4 to 40 v/v. 